Alexander Morozevich

Alexander Morozevich

Alexander Sergeyvich Morozevich (Russian: Александр Сергеевич Морозе́вич; born July 18, 1977) is a Russian chess Grandmaster. In the May 2012 FIDE list, he had an Elo rating of 2769, making him the 9th-highest rated player in the world, although he has previously ranked as high as second, in the July 2008 list.

Morozevich has been one of the best chess players in the world for nearly a decade. He is famous for employing unusual openings, for example the Chigorin Defense (1. d4 d5 2. c4 Nc6), and more recently the Albin Countergambit (1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5); both systems are hardly ever seen at the top level. He is also well known for preferring complicated rather than clear positions. Due to his risky and spectacular style which produces relatively few draws, Morozevich is popular among chess fans. Among his most notable results are 7.5/10 at the 2000 Chess Olympiad (winning Bronze Medal for board 2 and gaining the highest Elo performance rating at 2803.7) and 7/11 at the 2002 Chess Olympiad; first place in the overall standings at the Amber tournament in 2002, 2004 (shared with Kramnik) and 2006 (shared with Anand); first place in Biel tournament three times: 2003, 2004 and 2006; and twice winning the Russian championship (1998 and 2007).

Read more about Alexander Morozevich:  Career and Results, Team Competitions, Blindfold Chess, Books and Publications